Mission

The Department of Languages, Linguistics, Literatures, and Cultures (LLLC) is committed to advancing the study and appreciation of global languages, literatures, and cultures at the University of Iowa and strives to make them visible locally, nationally, and internationally. The department fosters interdisciplinary collaboration among its constituent units, offering a forum where member units work together to: 

  1. Advance the study of languages, literatures, linguistics, societies, regions, and cultures 

  1. Develop interdisciplinary research and artistic creativity 

  1. Promote global awareness and appreciation of human representation within the multilingual, multicultural realities of our contemporary global society

The greatest strengths of LLLC lie in its representation of disciplines, methodologies, and its large number of program offerings. Faculty are highly invested in student success and in providing opportunities for rich cultural exploration through the co-curriculum and study abroad to guide students towards creating a positive impact in our multinational, multicultural, and multilingual world. With its emphases on understanding and embracing linguistic and cultural representation, investigating and understanding language structure and usage, and promoting critical global literacy, creative writing, and translation, LLLC is central to both the University of Iowa’s mission of access, opportunity, and representation and status as the Writing University.

History

  • The Department of Asian Languages and Literature is established

    1956

    The Department of Asian Languages and Literature was one of the oldest Asian languages departments in the Midwest. 

  • The University of Iowa begins offering English language instruction and support

    1959

    English language instruction and support courses were taught by linguists within the Department of English.

  • The Iowa Translation Workshop is created

    1963

    The Iowa Translation Workshop is the country's first translation workshop in a university setting. Since then, translation has been an integral part of the conversation about writing and world literature at the University of Iowa.  

  • The Department of Linguistics is created

    1970

    English language courses as well as degree programs focusing on Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) were offered.

  • The Iowa Intensive English Program (IIEP) is established

    1980

    The IIEP was established for students whose focus was on intensive English instruction.

  • MFA in Literary Translation is created

    1984

    The MFA was founded by Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak and Daniel Weissbort. Consistent with their legacy, the MFA program in Literary Translation still combines creative practice and international literature in the making with training in comparative literature, world languages & literature, and craft scholarship and theory.

  • Teaching Assistant Preparation in English (TAPE) program is established

    1985

    The TAPE program was designed for prospective teaching assistants whose first language is not English. It has been offering linguistic support and cultural orientation to the US classroom to teaching assistants ever since.

  • Committee to create an American Sign Language program is formed

    1990

    A group of faculty and graduate students who had an interest in American Sign Language formed a committee with the goal of establishing an ASL program. In seeking to have ASL satisfy the CLAS Core World Language requirement, the founding committee addressed three “concerns” about ASL—that ASL is not a true language but more of a code; that Deaf people have no culture; and that ASL has no literature.

  • Proposal to create an American Sign Language program is approved

    1993

    The proposal to create an American Sign Language program was approved, with funding for a 3-year Pilot Program to start in the Fall of 1994, housed in the College of Liberal Arts (not in a department) with just one class and one faculty member. That class was capped at 22 students, but 75 applied. Preference was given to Deaf and hard-of-hearing students, as well as those with Deaf and hard-of-hearing family members, or with an intention to work in a deaf-related profession. In every semester since being established, student demand has far outpaced available openings.  

  • American Sign Language Pilot Program is made permanent

    1997

    The three-year ASL Pilot Program was made permanent and moved into the Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology. That year, the Program offered its first advanced class for students who had completed four semesters of language courses and History of the American Deaf Community.

  • New degrees offered

    2003

    The Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Certificate in ASL and Deaf Studies and the BA in International Studies were created.

  • The Iowa Intensive English Program becomes a part of the International Conditional Admission Program

    2006

    The Iowa Intensive English Program becomes a part of the International Conditional Admission Program for the University of Iowa, offering intensive English instruction to students who are academically admissible to the UI but who also need further English development.

  • Russian Program joins the Department of Asian Languages and Literature

    2007

    The Department changed its name to the Department of Asian and Slavic Languages and Literatures (ASLL). The department consisted of five academic programs: the Chinese Program, the Japanese Program, the Korean Program, the Russian Program, and the South Asian Program, each specialized in a respective target language and related area studies.  

  • American Sign Language Minor established

    2008

    The American Sign Language program begins to offer a minor in American Sign Language.

  • The Division of World Languages, Literature, and Cultures is created

    2008

    The Division was home to five departments Asian and Slavic Languages and Literatures (ASLL), French and Italian, German, Linguistics, and Spanish and Portuguese, as well as three programs at the graduate and undergraduate levels—American Sign Language (ASL), Foreign Language Acquisition Research and Education (FLARE—also known as the PhD in Second Language Acquisition), and the MFA in Literary Translation. DWLLC units offered regular instruction in 13 world languages and literature. In addition, the Directed Independent Language Study program (DILS), the Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) program, and the Language Media Center were housed in the Division and were supervised by DWLLC staff.

  • The International Studies Program comes to the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

    2011

    The International Studies Program came to the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences from International Programs (IP) in 2011. The program’s core mission has always been to provide UI students with interdisciplinary, internationally-focused knowledge and skills that they can use to effectively and ethically engage with diverse people and navigate the challenges and opportunities of an increasingly interconnected world. Throughout the program’s history, it has drawn on the wide expertise of internationally-focused faculty to provide students with a diverse and comprehensive education in international studies.  

  • Undergraduate Minor in Translation for Global Literacy is introduced

    2016

    The minor is created to expressly address the functions of translation in the age of globalization and the role of translation in cultural exchange. Highly integrative, Translation for Global Literacy involves academic training at the intersection of world languages, creative writing, translation studies, and virtually any disciplinary program at the University.

  • International Studies Program streamlines the format of its major

    2021

    Before 2021, students chose to specialize in a track focused on a specific topic or world region, as well as one of three program options. From 2021 onwards, students will build community via a shared set of International Studies foundation courses and capstone options while choosing from a multidisciplinary array of courses focused on varied "Global Perspectives" and "World Cultures and Societies." Students may also choose to pursue an optional concentration in "Global Business and Communication," "International Human Rights and Public Service," or "International Sustainable Development."

  • The Iowa Intensive English Program closes

    2023

    In the fall of 2023, the Iowa Intensive English Program closed after being established in 1980. 

  • English as a Second Language Programs returns to the Department of Linguistics

    2023

    From 2010 to 2023, ESL Programs were a separate program within the College of Liberal Arts.

  • The Department of Languages, Linguistics, Literatures, and Cultures is established

    2025

    The new department combines multiple departments and programs under the Division of World Languages, Literature, and Cultures into one.